Body mass index at age 18 years and during adult life and ovarian cancer risk.

During the years 1994-1999, a nationwide ovarian cancer case-control study was conducted in Israel. The present analysis addresses the question: Is epithelial ovarian cancer associated with body mass index at age 18 years and/or with weight changes in body mass index between adolescence and adult life? The study is based on 1,269 women with epithelial ovarian cancer and 2,111 matched controls. A significant decrease in risk of ovarian cancer was observed with parity, oral contraceptive use, and postmenopausal status.

The role of nutritional habits during gestation and child life in pediatric brain tumor etiology.

Our aim was to evaluate the role of maternal nutritional habits during the period of gestation and of children subsequent diet in the etiology of pediatric brain tumors. All cases of incident nervous system tumors under age 18, diagnosed between 1984 and 1993 (n = 300) in Israel were identified. Two matched population controls per case were selected (n = 574).

Cancer risk following radiotherapy for infertility or menstrual disorders.

A cohort of 968 Israeli women treated with radiotherapy for infertility was followed up for cancer incidence. The majority of the subjects were irradiated to both the ovaries and the pituitary gland. Mean doses to the brain, colon, ovary and bone marrow were 0.

Increased risk of salivary gland tumors after low-dose irradiation.

Objective: To assess the risk of neoplastic development among persons exposed to scalp irradiation.

Study Design: Historical cohort study initially; prospective follow-up subsequently.

Method: Two control groups--population and siblings--matched for age, sex, ethnic origin, and year of immigration.

In vitro radiosensitivity of fibroblasts from thyroid and skin cancer patients treated with X-rays for tinea capitis.

To investigate the hypothesis that persons who developed thyroid or skin cancer subsequent to scalp irradiation for tinea capitis are particularly sensitive to radiation, possibly because of a high frequency of ataxia-telangiectasia, we used an in vitro cell survival assay to evaluate radiosensitivity of their fibroblast cell strains. Study subjects were selected from a cohort of 10,834 Israelis irradiated during childhood for tinea capitis. Skin fibroblasts were obtained from thyroid and skin cancer patients (cases) as well as a sample of subjects who did not have cancer (controls).

Factors affecting the development of skin cancer after scalp irradiation.

A nested case control study of persons who developed skin cancer after scalp irradiation in childhood revealed two risk factors for the appearance of radiation-induced skin cancer: (a) an apparently higher radiation dose delivered inadvertently, manifested by a higher prevalence of alopecia and radiation dermatitis (RR = 3.4; CI 1.3-8.

Radiation-induced skin carcinomas of the head and neck.

Radiation exposures to the scalp during childhood for tinea capitis were associated with a fourfold increase in skin cancer, primarily basal cell carcinomas, and a threefold increase in benign skin tumors. Malignant melanoma, however, was not significantly elevated. Overall, 80 neoplasms were identified from an extensive search of the pathology logs of all major hospitals in Israel and computer linkage with the national cancer registry.

Thyroid neoplasia following low-dose radiation in childhood.

The thyroid gland is highly sensitive to the carcinogenic effects of ionizing radiation. Previously, we reported a significant increase of thyroid cancer and adenomas among 10,834 persons in Israel who received radiotherapy to the scalp for ringworm. These findings have now been extended with further follow-up and revised dosimetry.

Nutritional factors associated with benign breast disease etiology: a case-control study.

Between 1977 and 1980, 854 biopsied cases of benign breast disease (BBD) and 755 matched surgical and 723 matched neighborhood controls subjects were interviewed in Israel by using a detailed food frequency questionnaire. Cases were classified according to degree of ductal atypia (Black-Chablon grading system). Women with atypic lesions (grades greater than or equal to 3) reported a higher intake of all types of foods compared with both control series.

Increased risk of breast cancer after low-dose irradiation.

A significant increase in the risk of breast cancer has been found for the most recent 5-year period of a long-term follow-up study of children subjected to scalp irradiation, in whom a carcinogenic effect was previously only apparent in the head and neck. This increased risk was found among women aged 5 to 9 years at exposure. The breast had been exposed to a low radiation dose of approximately 16 mGy.

Tumors of the brain and nervous system after radiotherapy in childhood.

We investigated the relation between radiotherapy in childhood for tinea capitis and the later development of tumors of the brain and nervous system among 10,834 patients treated between 1948 and 1960 in Israel. Benign and malignant tumors were identified from the pathology records of all Israeli hospitals and from Israeli national cancer and death registries. Doses of radiation to the neural tissue were retrospectively estimated for each patient (mean, 1.

A nationwide study of breast disease.

Records of histopathology from the 3734 Jewish women having breast biopsy and/or operations in all Israeli hospitals during the year from July 1979 to June 1980 were reviewed. Approximately 28.5% of these women were diagnosed as having breast cancer and 71.